Context
In the aerospace industry, logging every defect spotted during ground inspections is a mission-critical process. To streamline part of this demanding work, our client sought to develop an application capable of:
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Visualizing anomalies in 3D;
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Centralizing defect data;
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Operating continuously and reliably.
This project came with a set of tough challenges:
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Delivering a smooth user interface while handling large datasets in real-time;
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Integrating with an already complex software ecosystem, including specific standards like SSO;
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Bringing the system into production while ensuring future maintainability;
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Keeping the application operational during system maintenance.
Close collaboration with client teams was essential throughout the entire lifecycle of the project.
Our approach
To meet these demanding requirements, we built a three-tier architecture:
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The client application was developed in Unity (C#) to leverage its robust 3D capabilities and ensure cross-platform support (Windows PC, Android, and iOS).
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The backend was implemented using Django (Python) and Django REST Framework, served by Gunicorn.
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Hosting was deployed on AWS: Elastic Beanstalk and Docker for dev environments; EC2, RDS, Cognito and S3 for high availability in production.
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A Blue-Green deployment strategy was introduced to minimize downtime during updates.
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CI/CD pipelines powered by GitLab were integrated to automate testing, compile the Unity client and manage rollouts across demo, staging, and production environments.
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These technologies ensured both reliability and traceability, while easing multi-environment management.
Four of our team members contributed to different phases of the project, covering almost all aspects of the technical execution.
Results
A fully operational solution, ready for future growth
Now in production, the application meets the client’s expectations with its smooth interface and seamless integration into their workflows. Unity-powered 3D visualization greatly enhances defect readability and monitoring.
On the technical side, a strong architecture and efficient CI/CD pipeline reduce the risk of regressions and enable fast, low-impact deployments. Software updates are now carried out with minimal service disruption.
This project is a great example of what it takes to design a high-performance, reliable, and scalable industrial tool. Rather than opting for an off-the-shelf solution, we worked closely with the client to build something robust and sustainable, by respecting business constraints, and anticipating future needs.
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